A short-term in situ CO₂ enrichment experiment on Heron Island (GBR)

Ocean acidification poses multiple challenges for coral reefs on molecular to ecological scales, yet previous experimental studies of the impact of projected CO₂ concentrations have mostly been done in aquarium systems with corals removed from their natural ecosystem and placed under artificial light and seawater conditions. The Coral–Proto Free Ocean Carbon Enrichment System (CP-FOCE) uses a network of sensors to monitor conditions within each flume and maintain experimental pH as an offset from environmental pH using feedback control on the injection of low pH seawater. Carbonate chemistry conditions maintained in the −0.06 and −0.22 pH offset treatments were significantly different than environmental conditions. The results from this short-term experiment suggest that the CP-FOCE is an important new experimental system to study in situ impacts of ocean acidification on coral reef ecosystems.

Characterization of Thin PtSI/p-Si Schottky Diodes

A series of PtSi on p-type Si diodes have been characterized in order to establish correlations among processing parameters, metallurgical features and electrical properties. Characterization techniques include analytical (TED, TEM), electrical (current-voltage characteristics), and optical (photoemission and absorption). The fabrication techniques involve e-beam evaporation of platinum layers at UHV levels onto VLSI grade (100) p-type silicon substrates. The silicide layers are formed via sub-eutectic solid state diffusion at 350°C. The main trends with thickness as well as possible interrelationships are described. An unexpected result is the presence of unreacted polycrystalline Pt and Pt2Si at the interface.

Combined effect of hemipteran control and liquid bait on Argentine ant populations

The invasive Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr), has become a worldwide problem capable of inflicting significant ecological and economic injury on urban, agricultural, and natural environments. The mobility of this pest ant has long been noted, rapidly moving nests to new food resources and then away as resources are depleted. This ant, like many pest ant species, has a special affinity for honeydew excreted by phloem-feeding Hemiptera. We investigated the effect of various hemipteran control strategies on terrapin scale densities and measured their indirect effect on local Argentine ant densities and foraging effort. We then determined whether this indirect treatment strategy improved the performance of an ant bait. We predicted that Argentine ants would move nests away from trees treated for Hemiptera and then move nests back when a liquid bait was offered, followed by a decline in ant numbers due to intake of the toxicant. A horticultural oil spray and soil application of the systemic insecticide, imidacloprid, had no effect on terrapin scale numbers. However, trunk-injected dicrotophos caused a reduction in scale and a decline in local Argentine ant nest density and canopy foraging effort. We also recorded a reduction in local Argentine ant ground foraging when large amounts of liquid bait were applied, and we found no evidence that combining dicrotophos with liquid ant bait performed better than each treatment alone. We suggest that a strategy of combined hemipteran control plus application of liquid ant bait can reduce local Argentine ant densities, when both components of this system are highly efficacious.

Northward expansion of the invasive Linepithema humile (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the eastern United States is constrained by winter soil temperatures

The invasive Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) has been evident in the North Carolina Piedmont, United States for 90 yr but has failed to spread further north. We investigated the mechanisms preventing this expansion. The Argentine ant ceases foraging at temperatures below 5°C and we hypothesized that winter soil temperatures at higher latitudes restricted foraging long enough to cause colony starvation. We tested if the Argentine ant could successfully feed at temperatures below 5°C and found that colonies would starve. We subjected Argentine ant nests to a range of sub- and above-freezing temperatures and measured worker mortality at various time intervals. We found that Argentine ant colonies will collapse after 8.5 d at 5°C. Argentine ants can escape ambient cold temperatures by moving nests into the soil column. We tested how deeply into the soil Argentine ant queens and workers need to move to survive winter in North Carolina. Soil temperatures in the North Carolina Piedmont do not fall below 5°C for longer than nine consecutive days; therefore, Argentine ant colonies need only to retreat a few centimeters into the soil column to escape unsuitable temperatures. Winter soil temperature data from four climate stations situated from latitudes 35°, the current Eastern United States latitudinal limit for Argentine ant population expansion, to 39° were searched for periods where soil temperatures would have led to colony extirpation. North of their current distributions, extended periods of soil temperatures below 5°C regularly occur, preventing Argentine ant colonies from persisting.

Effect of an invasive and native ant on a field population of the black citrus aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

Invasive ants often enter into facultative mutualisms that frequently lead to outbreaks of the hemipteran partner. Native ants may also enter into similar mutualisms but often these do not lead to outbreaks. However, field studies comparing the impact of an invasive and native ant on a honeydew-producing hemipteran are lacking. We monitored numerical changes of the black citrus aphid, Toxoptera aurantii, tended by adjacent colonies of the invasive Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, and the endemic odorous house ant, Tapinoma sessile, during 2005, 2006, and 2007. Ant-tended aphid numbers were higher than those of untended aphids, with L. humile-tended and T. sessile-tended T. aurantii populations being comparable in 2005 and 2007. However, in 2006, a severe storm, with heavy rainfall, reduced T. sessile and aphid populations in areas occupied by T. sessile, whereas L. humile and aphids tended by L. humile were not reduced. This suggested that T. sessile foraging activity and hemipteran-tending was negatively impacted by severe weather. A laboratory experiment simulating rainfall striking the surface of a leaf showed that T. sessile foraging activity declined sharply under severe simulated rainfall conditions, whereas foraging activity of L. humile did not. Maintaining populations of honeydew-producing Hemiptera across broad climatic conditions may be one mechanism by which L. humile gains a competitive advantage over native ants occupying overlapping niches.

Effects of honeydew-producing hemipteran denial on local argentine ant distribution and boric acid bait performance

The Argentine ant is well known for its affinity for honeydew and is often associated with hemipteran outbreaks in agricultural and urban environments. It has been suggested that Argentine ants may be controlled by restricting access to honeydew, thereby forcing the ants to move or by encouraging increased liquid toxicant intake. We tested this possible control strategy by restricting Argentine ant access to the honeydew-producing terrapin scale within the canopy of red maple trees and monitoring ant numbers with pitfall traps and nest counts in the mulch around the tree base. Argentine ant nest numbers fell dramatically in the mulch around ant-excluded trees; however, there was no reduction in Argentine ant numbers caught in pitfalls around trees with or without canopy access. We added 0.5% boric acid bait stations at the base of the red maples and monitored bait consumption. Pitfall and nest counts were not affected by the addition of boric acid, although bait consumption was lower around ant-excluded trees, suggesting that restricting access to honeydew-producing Hemiptera did not enhance bait performance. We attribute this result to the increased distance Argentine ant workers had to trail from nest to bait station when not tending nearby terrapin scale. We suggest an alternative management strategy concentrating direct insecticidal control of Argentine ants around a few host plants infested with honeydew-producing Hemiptera by controlling Hemiptera in nearby host plants.

SNS-595 demonstrates clinical activity and dose-proportional pharmacokinetics (PK) in two phase I clinical studies

3062

Background: SNS-595 is a novel naphthyridine analog with broad and potent activity in preclinical models. Methods: SNS-595 was administered to patients (pts) with advanced solid cancers as an IV infusion over 10 minutes on 2 schedules: (A) qwk x3/1 week off, and (B) q3wks. Pt eligibility included refractory solid tumors and adequate organ function. Results: In study A, 20 patients (pts) were treated in 6 cohorts (dose range 3–24 mg/m2/wk). In study B, 41 pts were treated in 9 cohorts (dose range 3–75 mg/m2/wk). After the MTD in heavily pretreated (HP) pts was found, dose escalation in minimally pretreated (MP) pts was evaluated. The median ages were 60.5 yrs (A) and 59.5 yrs (B), sex 12F/8M (A), 16F/25M (B). All pts had a ECOG PS 0–2. Neutropenia was the dose limiting toxicity (DLT) for both studies. The MTD for A was 15 mg/m2 for HP and MP pts; the MTD for B was 48 mg/m2 for HP and 60 mg/m2 for MP pts. For both studies 2 pts had grade 4 thrombocytopenia; non-hematological toxicities were all grade 1/2. In A, pharmacokinetics (PK) were assessed on Days 1 and 15 (after the 1st and 3rd doses); exposure increased linearly over an 8-fold dose range (1.6–15 mcghr/mL), CL, Vss and T1/2 averaged 2 L/hr/m2, 49 L/m2, 18 hr, respectively, and did not change from Day 1 to 15. In B, PK were assessed on Day 1 after the 1st dose; exposure increased linearly over the 24-fold dose range (1.1–46 mcghr/mL), CL, Vss, and T1/2 averaged 2 L/hr/m2, 53 L/m2, and 21 hrs, respectively. For A, best responses were 4 SD (range 13–22 wks); for B, best responses were 1 PR and 12 SD (range 14–56 wks). Conclusion: SNS-595 was well tolerated and showed clinical activity with both qwk and q3wk dosing. The DLT was non-cumulative neutropenia. SNS-595 demonstrated remarkably predictable PK, with low inter-and intra-patient variability. Based on these data, phase 2 studies of SNS-595 as monotherapy are ongoing, and are planned in combination therapy.

[Table: see text]

Seroprevalence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum among Healthy Dogs and Horses in Israel

The presence of reacting antibodies to Anaplasma phagocytophilum has previously been demonstrated in Israel, both in humans and the golden jackal (Canis aureus syriacus). This study was undertaken to determine the seroprevalence of A. phagocytophilum antibodies in two additional potential hosts, domestic dogs and horses in order to investigate the possibility of exposure to the organism in Israel. Of 195 dogs tested, 9% were seroreactive with A. phagocytophilum antigen and 30% were seroreactive to Ehrlichia canis. Twenty-nine percent of the dogs seropositive for E. canis were also reactive to A. phagocytophilum. Two dogs had immunofluorescence antibody (IFA) antibody titres for A. phagocytophilum greater than E. canis. The equine serological survey (n = 300) revealed no seroreactive horses. The results presented in this study suggest that dogs in Israel could have been accidentally exposed to A. phagocytophilum, for example by ticks carried on migrating birds, however, the possibility of cross-reaction with E. canis should also be considered. In spite of the high prevalence of ticks on horses in Israel during the summer months, no evidence for exposure to A. phagocytophilum was apparent.

Linkage analysis for autism in a subset families with obsessive-compulsive behaviors: evidence for an autism susceptibility gene on chromosome 1 and further support for susceptibility genes on chromosome 6 and 19

Although there is considerable evidence for a strong genetic component to idiopathic autism, several genome-wide screens for susceptibility genes have been carried out with limited concordance of linked loci, reflecting numerous genes of weak effect and/or sample heterogeneity. In the current study, linkage analysis was carried out in a sample of 62 autism-affected relative pairs with more severe obsessive-compulsive behaviors, selected from a larger (n=115) set of autism-affected relative pairs as a means of reducing sample heterogeneity. Obsessive-compulsive behaviors were assessed using the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R). In the sample with more severe obsessive-compulsive behaviors, multipoint NPL scores above 2 were observed on chromosomes 1, 4, 5, 6, 10, 11 and 19, with the strongest evidence for linkage on chromosome 1 at the marker D1S1656, where the multipoint NPL score was 3.06, and the two-point NPL score was 3.21. In follow-up analyses, analyzing the subset of families (n=35) where the patients had the most severe obsessive-compulsive behaviors generated a multipoint NPL score of 2.76, and a two-point NPL score of 2.79, indicating that the bulk of evidence for linkage was derived from the families most severely affected with obsessive-compulsive behaviors. The data suggest that there is an autism susceptibility gene on chromosome 1 and provide further support for the presence of autism susceptibility genes on chromosomes 6 and 19.

Massive light-dependent cycling of inorganic carbon between oxygenic photosynthetic microorganisms and their surroundings

Membrane inlet mass spectrometry indicated massive light-dependent cycling of inorganic carbon between the medium and the cells of various phytoplankton species representing the main groups of aquatic primary producers. These included diatoms, symbiotic and free living dinoflagellates, a coccolithophorid, a green alga and filamentous and single cell cyanobacteria. These organisms could maintain an ambient CO(2) concentration substantially above or below that expected at chemical equilibrium with HCO(3) (-). The coccolithophorid Emiliania huxleyi shifted from net CO(2) uptake to net CO(2) efflux with rising light intensity. Differing responses of CO(2) uptake and CO(2) fixation to changing light intensity supported the notion that these two processes are not compulsorily linked. Simultaneous measurements of CO(2) and O(2) exchange and of the fluorescence parameters in Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7942, showed that CO(2) uptake can serve as a sensitive probe of the energy status of the photosynthetic reaction centers. However, during transitions in light intensity, changes in CO(2) uptake did not accord with those expected from fluorescence change. Quantification of the net fluxes of CO(2), HCO(3) (-) and of photosynthesis at steady-state revealed that substantial HCO(3) (-) efflux accompanied CO(2) uptake and fixation in the case of 'CO(2) users'. On the other hand, 'HCO(3) (-) users' were characterized by a rate of net CO(2) uptake below that of CO(2) fixation. The results support the notion that entities associated with the CCM function not only in raising the CO(2) concentration at the site of Rubisco; they may also serve as a means of diminishing photodynamic damage by dissipating excess light energy.

Effects of aromatic cedar mulch on the Argentine ant and the odorous house ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

In laboratory studies, the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr), and the odorous house ant, Tapinoma sessile (Say), avoided aromatic cedar mulch as a nesting substrate. Both ant species were killed when confined with fresh aromatic cedar mulch in sealed containers. However, when confined with cedar mulch that had been aged outdoors for up to 140 d, mortality of L. humile was complete regardless of mulch age, whereas T. sessile mortality declined significantly over the mulch-aging period. Argentine ant susceptibility to aromatic cedar mulch was also greater than that of the odorous house ant when colonies were restricted to mulch in open trays. In addition, commercial aromatic cedar oil was lethal to both ant species. Our results suggest that aromatic cedar mulch may serve as an effective component of a comprehensive urban ant management program.

Affective instability and impulsivity in borderline personality and bipolar II disorders: similarities and differences

OBJECTIVES

many studies have reported a high degree of comorbidity between mood disorders, among which are bipolar disorders, and borderline personality disorder and some studies have suggested that these disorders are co-transmitted in families. However, few studies have compared personality traits between these disorders to determine whether there is a dimensional overlap between the two diagnoses. The aim of this study was to compare impulsivity, affective lability and intensity in patients with borderline personality and bipolar II disorder and in subjects with neither of these diagnoses.

METHODS

patients with borderline personality but without bipolar disorder (n=29), patients with bipolar II disorder without borderline personality but with other personality disorders (n=14), patients with both borderline personality and bipolar II disorder (n=12), and patients with neither borderline personality nor bipolar disorder but other personality disorders (OPD; n=93) were assessed using the Affective Lability Scale (ALS), the Affect Intensity Measure (AIM), the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI) and the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-7B).

RESULTS

borderline personality patients had significantly higher ALS total scores (P<0.05) and bipolar II patients tended to have higher ALS scores than patients with OPD (P<0.06). On one of the ALS subscales, the borderline patients displayed significant higher affective lability between euthymia and anger (P<0.002), whereas patients with bipolar II disorder displayed affective lability between euthymia and depression (P<0.04), or elation (P<0.01) or between depression and elation (P<0.01). A significant interaction between borderline personality and bipolar II disorder was observed for lability between anxiety and depression (P<0.01) with the ALS. High scores for impulsiveness (BISTOT, P<0.001) and hostility (BDHI, P<0.05) were obtained for borderline personality patients only and no significant interactions between diagnoses were observed. Only borderline personality patients tended to have higher affective intensity (AIM, P<0.07).

CONCLUSIONS

borderline personality disorder and bipolar II disorder appear to involve affective lability, which may account for the efficacy of mood stabilizers treatments in both disorders. However, our results suggest that borderline personality disorder cannot be viewed as an attenuated group of affective disorders.